Off To The Circus
by Nicholas Lucien
Summary: This came out of the wildcard prompt for WaltD in the FKFicFest2018: Goodbye cruel world: I'm off to join the circus. Do you think any of the characters wished once in a while that they could just run away and join the circus? I do not own these characters or poster art and is not intended to infringe upon any copyright owners. No profit is being made from this work.
1. Chapter 1

Don slightly tugged back the sleeve of his gray jacket and the shirt cuff to quickly glance at the watch wrapped around his left wrist. He had been hoping for a calm night like yesterday, but he had no sooner clocked in and then it was off to a scene. The watch hands confirmed it was not quite two o'clock, and instead of getting a souvlaki and sitting down to work through the witness statements and compare those to the autopsy report, he and Nick were silently walking down the corridor towards the morgue. They hadn't heard from Natalie all night and Don figured by now she would have something preliminary to give them that would help with the case. Or at least confirm the homicide so they could officially still continue with the investigation.

Nick was contemplating their most recent case in an attempt to ignore his growing hunger when he was distracted by someone in light blue scrubs and white lab coat emerging from a room near the end of the hallway. As the harried technician hurried towards them, Nick noted the thick stack of folders held close to the chest between crossed arms. Head down and muttering, the man did not seem aware of anyone else in the hallway and would have crashed into him, but at the last moment Nick sidestepped and flatten himself against the wall to avoid the collision. Nick turned his head and watched the technician continue to scuttle down the hall, seemingly oblivious to what had nearly happened. He pushed himself off the wall and went over to Schanke, who had stopped to wait for him.

"Geez. I guess that guy's really busy. I don't even think he saw you."

"Yeah," Nick concurred. "He had a lot of folders." Thinking back, that was more than he usually saw the technicians carrying around.

Shrugging, Don resumed his walk towards Natalie's examination room. "And I complain when we have a backlog of paperwork. At least we don't have that much to do."

Nick nodded to show he had heard Schanke as they both headed towards Nat's room. As he approached her door and put his arm out to push it, the door quickly swung open, and Nick, for the second time, had to quickly move to avoid a bodily collision.

"Excuse me, I'm so sorry guys," Grace apologized as she tentatively smiled and slipped between the Detectives to get into the hallway.

"Everything alright in there?" Schanke asked.

As she clutched the various folders, Grace quickly turned to face them. "Just a little stress due to a backlog." She dropped her smile and narrowed her eyes slightly. "Be careful." Pivoting, she resumed heading down the corridor without looking back.

Don shifted his gaze to Nick. "Did you see the look on her face? Maybe we should come back later."

"It's Nat, Schanke." Nick gave a reassuring grin. "We'll be fine."

"Well, just in case," Don said as he indicated the door with one extended arm, "you go first, and I'll back you up."

Nick rolled his eyes at Schanke's gesture as he pushed the door open and entered Nat's room. He had presumed she would be working at the metal autopsy table in the middle of the room but instead found her over by the desk. Nick saw her engrossed in flipping through various folders and putting them into different piles. He headed over as Nat grabbed one stack and dropped it upon another pile, the folders making a heavy thumping sound upon impact.

"Grace, I know I said those last case files had to be done first, but these are apparently already past due and really need to be handled now." Natalie looked up while enveloping the newest stack she had made. "Can you-" She blinked as she saw not Grace, as she expected, but Nick with Schanke trailing behind him. Nick was smiling at her.

"Grace just left," Nick explained.

Letting out an exhausted sigh, Natalie looked down as she dropped the folders back onto her desk. Turning her gaze to the two Detectives, she furrowed her brow and shook her head. "Why are you guys here? I didn't call you. I haven't even gotten to your case yet."

"But it's been-" Don started, then immediately stopped. The intense expression on Natalie's face silenced him.

"I've been a little busy here," she snapped. Natalie closed her eyes and pressed the fingertips of one hand against her temple. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way."

Nick had heard the strain and irritation in her voice, but knew it was not really directed at them. "Lots of new cases tonight?" he gently ventured.

Natalie rubbed a hand across her eyes as she sank into her chair. "No more than usual." She opened her eyes to look at the piles of work on her desk. "We've had some staff from all the shifts leave, along with an ME and a pathologist from day shift." Natalie stiffly shrugged her shoulder. "It happens. With this type of work …," she trailed off, leaving the rest unsaid. They all knew the pressures of their profession. "New candidates are being interviewed," she explained, "but in the meantime, the backlog of work is piling up around here, and we're all a bit overwhelmed. This is a lot more than we usually have to deal with when this happens."

"Are you alright?" Don coaxed. "I mean, surely you have a plan worked out for this type of situation?"

The chair squeaked as Natalie stood up. She threaded her fingers through her hair, pushing some of the strands away from her face while she thought about all the paperwork and extra autopsies still left to do tonight. Probably, Natalie realized, she would have to stay the day to get it all caught up. Just to get this caught up, she reminded herself; new work would continue to come, creating another backlog again for tomorrow. "Oh, I've been contemplating a career change. My current plan is to just give it all up and sneak away to join the circus." She laughed. "I might even get a good distance out of town before anyone notices."

Don quickly glanced at his partner. "People would notice, Natalie." He thought back to when he was a boy and his old man had taken him to the circus. He had immediately wanted to run off and join them on what had seemed like a never-ending adventure. Don understood the attraction, but also thought that it wasn't really an adventure Natalie was looking for, but a distraction from her workload. "So," he prompted, "what would you do at the circus?"

"Oh, it's just a saying, Schanke. You know – a way to leave the stress from life behind and escape. But this," Natalie gestured at the desktop, "all this has to be done. It might drive me crazy, but I know I have to do it."

"Still," Don persisted, "what would you do?" He puffed up his chest. "I would be a lion tamer." Pretending to hold a chair in front of himself, he made jerking motions as if to fend off a large advancing cat, while making a slight whipping gesture with his other hand.

Nick smirked at Schanke's miming. "Lion tamer?"

"Sure," Don said defensively. "Thrills." He pretended to put his head into a lion's mouth. "Danger." He looked at the incredulous expressions on both Nick and Natalie's faces. He dropped his arms to rest against his sides. "Hot lady assistants," he confessed. Don heard Nick's snicker. "Well, what would you be, Nick? How about a fire-breather?" He watched as Nick stiffened in response.

As memories of his experiences with fire rose up, Nick quickly suppressed them back down. "No," he firmly replied. "Nothing with fire." He gave Nat a lopsided grin before returning his attention to his partner. "Magician, actually." Nick moved to be almost touching Schanke, reaching for the pen in the other man's jacket chest pocket. "Here," he drawled, "let me show you something. I can make your pen disappear from your pocket. Just let me borrow it."

Don reached up with his right hand to protect his pen from Nick while also backing up slightly. "No way."

Nick put his hands up, palms facing Schanke, and stepped back. "Okay. You can keep the pen."

"Here's some advice: it's not much of a magic trick if you tell me what you're doing. You'll have to do better than that."

Natalie watched as Nick darted a quick glance and winked at her, then twirled his wrist with a flourish. A moment later, Schanke's black leather watch just appeared, dangling from between his fingers.

Don heard Natalie's gasp of amazement as he clasped his hand around his left wrist. Looking down, he confirmed the wrist really was bare. He looked back up at Nick, then went over to reclaim his watch. "How?" he uttered.

Feeling a slight tug, Nick let the wristwatch slip from his grasp. "Oh, just a little bit of distraction, misdirection, and sleight of hand." And a vampire's increased speed, but he didn't mention that ability. "I used to do close-up magic."

"That's more like pickpocketing," Don mumbled as he buckled his watch back on. He rubbed his wrist to correctly position the watch as he looked at both Nick and Natalie. He thought Natalie seemed a little less strained than before.

"Well, it would've been much easier if the watch actually was in your pocket." Nick glanced back at Nat and realized that although their actions might have been a needed distraction, he could tell she was already thinking again about her work. And also that they were in the way. With a quick jerk of his head towards the door, Nick signaled to Schanke they should both leave. Nat needed to get back to her work, and they would just have to wait at the precinct for the results about their case.

Before Don headed over towards the door to leave, he approached Natalie. "Look," he said, "the Circus is gonna be in Mississauga and me and Myra are taking Jenny this weekend. If you want to get away from the work for a while, we'd be happy to bring you along." Natalie placed her hand on his arm, gave him a quick pat, nodded and smiled. He sighed; at least he had tired. "Well, don't let this burn you out. You need to de-stress every now and then."

Nick waited until Schanke was almost at the door. Before joining him, he edged closer to Natalie. "Umm. My shift tonight is until sunrise, but I have tomorrow night off. I know what it's like to feel trapped and the pressures build up inside until you think running and leaving it all behind is the only option you have left. If you want to come over and talk, or … you know, just get away from this for a while, you can." He began to reach for her, but thought better and retracted his hand. Nick quickly smiled at Nat's curt nod, then turned to catch up with his partner to leave.

"So where did you do that magic trick?" Don asked as he pulled open the door.

"Well, I spent a few years in the circus world," Nick evasively replied.

Natalie watched as both Detectives exited her room, listening to Schanke's reply of Nick having engaged in yet another occupation before becoming a detective. The disbelief she heard in his voice a sure sign that Schanke doubted that all of Nick's various activities that he knew about could have really happened within those years. Natalie smiled, knowing Nick really had had plenty of time to have done all he had hinted at to Schanke, and more. Her smile fell as her mind once again pulled her back to all the work that was still waiting to be done. She closed her eyes and massaged her brow, feeling the pulsating headache from earlier return. Telling herself that she could get through this, as she had done in previous crunch times, she squared her shoulders, exhaled, then picked up the pile of folders. Though as she walked down the corridor to go find Grace, she noticed her mind beginning to shift from work to wondering what had happened to cause Nick to join up with a circus.


	2. Chapter 2

Warily, Natalie entered the nearly-empty Raven and began scanning the club area looking for Janette. Sunrise was in less than an hour, and Natalie knew that the few lingering patrons she saw were vampires. The owner wasn't in sight, so she decided to seek out Miklos; she doubted any other vampire here would help her. She found the bartender in a dark corner talking with Alma, an antique teapot and two teacups placed on the table between them. Natalie slowly headed over to him, though the closer she got, the more she could see he was quite agitated.

"This is goodbye. Shoot me out of a cannon and be done with it, I just don't care anymore."

She watched Alma lean towards Miklos to comfort him after his outburst. Natalie couldn't quite hear everything Alma replied with, something about the world being cruel, but it did seem to calm him down. She couldn't figure out what could possibly be going on, but considering the state Miklos was in, Natalie decided it would probably be better to leave him alone and seek out Janette by herself. Veering off to walk past them, the motion of Alma's arm towards the teapot attracted her attention. Natalie quickly averted her eyes once she saw that the liquid being poured from the teapot into Miklos' teacup was blood.

Holding a wine glass and a full bottle, Janette emerged from the back room and halted. She had sensed a warm body enter the club and quickly identified Nicolas' mortal, Natalie, and watched as she crept through the Raven as if looking for someone. Or possibly looking to avoid someone. It was obvious to her that Natalie was here without Nicolas and Janette thought it could be interesting to find out why. She waited for Natalie to come to her.

"Janette," Natalie gingerly uttered once she was near. She watched as the vampire blinked at her.

"Nicolas is not here."

"Umm, I know."

Definitely interesting, Janette thought, as she indicated with a graceful flick of her wrist that Natalie should take a seat at the nearby table. Stiffly, the mortal sat down. Janette tiled her head slightly, studying the doctor as she slid into the opposite seat and placed the bottle and glass on the table. The mortal was definitely stressed. She poured some of the house special from the black bottle into her empty wine glass. "What has distressed you, Natalie?" Janette asked as she took her first sip of pure blood. As if she needed to be told. When it came to mortals associated with Nicolas, it was usually very easy to figure out the source of what was upsetting them.

Now that she was here and actually with Janette, Natalie feared this was a mistake. She had been thinking about Nick since he had left the morgue and now something seemed much more worrisome than the piled-up work. It had seemed like a simple idea: just go to the Raven and talk with Janette. But now that she was here ….

"Natalie?" Janette waited some more time. "Is this about Nicolas? What has he done now? Is he not following your diet for him again?" she said, in a tone only slightly mocking. "I imagine that would cause some disappointment and stress." Though by now, Janette thought, the doctor should not have been surprised by Nicolas' reluctance.

"No. It's … it's nothing Nick's done."

"Hmm. Then it is something he has said." Janette took another drink from her glass as Natalie continued to seem hesitant.

Natalie let out a deep breath, and not entirely knowing how to start the conversation, began with the first idea that popped into her head. "Have you ever thought about just leaving to start a new life in the circus?"

Janette slammed her glass down upon the table, the blood sloshing up the sides and almost splashed out of the vessel. "Nicolas mentioned this? Is this what has upset you?" She leaned forward in her chair. "Did Nicolas tell you he has decided to do this?" Since LaCroix had come back into the city on a more permanent basis, she had been dreading this possibility. Janette did not like to think about how long it would be before they saw each other if Nicolas ran from their maker and disappeared again.

"No, nothing like that," Natalie placated. "It was just a thought."

Janette narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing the woman before her as she leaned back against the chair. "An odd thought to have. I have been asked many questions by mortals, but never if I had run off and joined a circus."

Under that piercing gaze, Natalie felt an urge to explain. "I'd been talking earlier with Nick and Schanke about the circus and Nick had mentioned he'd been in one."

"What random topics you mortals spontaneously talk about," Janette incredulously stated.

"Well, it came up because I'm under a lot of pressure at work and Schanke had asked me how I was handling it. I said I would probably run off to join the circus." Natalie lowered her eyes. "To get away from the stress."

"Stress?"

"We've had some people leave, and the work can't really pile up and has to be finished, so …." Natalie shrugged as she looked around the nightclub.

Janette nodded her head in understanding. "Work stress." She was very familiar with that type, thinking of her own and of so many of her patrons. She also knew a way to handle that. "You need a drink," Janette declared.

"Oh no," Natalie said as she snapped her attention back to Janette. "Why would you think that?"

"You came to a bar, Natalie. It is one of the activities I'm licensed to do here."

Natalie knew she wasn't going back to work until tomorrow night. Grace had convinced her she needed a break and time to relax, rather than continuing work during the day while fatigued and exhausted. Being in that state increased the risk of making time-consuming mistakes. "Well, maybe-"

"Good. I'll put it on Nicolas' tab," Janette interrupted. "Miklos!" She raised her voice to get her bartender's attention.

Natalie turned back to where she had seen Miklos and Alma. Miklos was sipping from the teacup while Alma, eyes flashing gold, glared at Janette.

"Fine," Janette huffed as she got up. Miklos, who had been brooding and miserable all night, was apparently still worked up over his most recent broken relationship. She hoped he would get over that fickle woman quickly; last time took almost a century and Janette did not have the patience to deal with that again. " _Nie mój cyrk, nie moje małpy_ ," Janette mumbled as she headed to the bar counter; she had no intention of involving herself with that problem this time.

Natalie watched as Janette went behind the bar, selected a glass from the hanging display, then filled it with wine. Janette quickly returned and placed the wine glass on the table. Natalie thanked her and took a sip while the other woman gracefully resumed sitting in the empty chair. "So Nick hasn't mentioned that he might leave?"

"No. He has not mentioned anything to me. And nothing about any circus."

Natalie drank more of the wine. After a while, and embolden slightly from the wine and that Janette was still sitting with her, decided to take a chance. She had heard stories about Nick, but not so much about other vampires, and she was curious. "So Nick was once in a circus, were you as well?"

Janette accepted the turn from what was probably really bothering Natalie. "Well, where else can one be with others who tend to be viewed as different than the norm?" Janette explained.

"So you were?"

"Yes, many vampires have participated in circuses, Natalie. Such an entertainment group provides good cover."

Natalie leaned forward in her chair. "Cover?"

Janette sipped her drink. "Once I was being pursued. I needed to move quickly, not stand out, and I thought it best to avoid the typical methods of travel. The circus I joined allowed me to have protection, and they moved quickly by rail in their own cars." Plus, each new town provided many strangers to feed from before the group had to once again move, but she decided to not mention that added bonus.

"How exactly could you blend in with them?"

"I was with others who were different and unique in their own rights. There were people who could stretch out their skin, or had sharpened teeth, or could contort to fit into a small trunk. There were individuals with extra legs, bearded ladies, or men whose faces were completely covered with hair. I would hardly stand out and be given no more notice than any of the other performers if townsfolk happened to speak of an odd woman."

Natalie shifted in her chair, then took a small sip of the wine remaining in her glass. "What if those looking for you caught on and discovered where you were?"

"The circus group is very protective of their own. Gangs and thieves know to stay away from such groups, who tended to take the law, and subsequent punishment, into their own hands. I was very safe with them."

Natalie was intrigued, and wanted to know what a vampire … what Janette … had done in the circus. "So what did you do there?"

"Oh, I was a wild woman. A savage cat-like creature of the forest from some far-off exotic land who had been reclaimed and civilized. I read books and poetry and could talk to the audience. Part human part animal individuals were very popular for a while in those shows. And if my pitch card stated I fed only on live animals, well, that was what you expected from such a person."

"Wild?" Natalie watched as Janette's lips turned upward into a smile, then she hissed and bared her fangs while her eyes stayed bright blue.

Janette saw the shock on Natalie's face. "Nicolas had the same look when he found me there. Though I at least didn't show surprise when I found him in a circus years later."

"What was he doing? Magic tricks?"

Janette grinned. "Not exactly."

"What then?"

"That time he was doing the human pincushion trick and sword swallowing." She saw Natalie had that shocked look on her face again. "What? It's not like such activities are really dangerous to us, so long as the sword is not made of wood."

"So … Nick's done this a few times."

"Yes."

Natalie had thought Nick had joined a circus once, not multiple times, which meant he was likely to do so again in the future. She also knew Nick never stayed very long in any one place and he had been here in Toronto for many years already. Combined with him mentioning having understood the impulse to run away, Natalie's thoughts raced back to wondering if he was going to soon leave. "Oh," she whispered.

Janette heard the odd note in Natalie's voice. "I know what you are thinking. Nicolas hasn't left yet."

"But he could. Nick could just up an easily join a circus and leave with them. Or leave on his own. Then he would be gone." Natalie felt the worry, which had been reduced slightly during her talk with Janette, had come back in full force.

"Yes, he could. I wouldn't be honest if I said he couldn't, or wouldn't, or hasn't done so before."

"But …," Natalie began. If Nick left …. She didn't know what she would do.

"The sun is about to rise. Go home," Janette advised. "Sleep. I know Nicolas is off tomorrow night. Go talk to him and tell him how you feel." She knew Natalie's voice would join her own, encouraging Nicolas to stay. "Sometimes he just needs to hear that we want him to stay. And perhaps," Janette quietly began, knowing from personal experience, "you need to hear the same from him."


	3. Chapter 3

Nick leaned against the kitchen table while he listened to the rumbling freight elevator as it brought Nat upward. He smiled and pushed himself off once she opened the metal sliding door and entered the loft space. "I know with all your work you don't have a lot of time, so I'm glad you decided to relax a little beforehand and come by."

Natalie's smile matched Nick's. "Me too. Grace is taking over for now, and I'll go in later for the remainder of the night shift and part of the day shift. I think we'll be able to manage this without too much difficulty," she said while walking over to the kitchen area.

"Oh," Nick uttered, while he twisted around and went over to the tiled counter next to the stove. He retrieved a mug that had some tea steeping in it. He removed the tea bag and handed the drink to Nat. "Here. It's supposed to be calming."

"Thanks." She took the mug and sipped some of the very warm liquid. She then went over and sat in the leather chair closest to the piano while Nick sank down on the couch. "Aren't you going to drink something?"

"Well, I didn't think you wanted to see me drink blood. I know how that makes you feel."

Natalie raised her eyebrow. "You still have that protein shake from last week."

Nick grinned sheepishly. "How did you know?"

"I know you," she replied. While Nick went over to the refrigerator, Natalie looked at the brick wall where two large canvases were hung. She had always thought those were decoration pieces, but perhaps the paintings were actually from the various times Nick had been with the circus.

Nick came back and sat down at the end of the leather couch next to Nat. "So you were at the Raven?"

Natalie turned her head towards Nick's voice. "How did you know?"

"A little bird told me." Nick saw the smile Nat had tried to hide with the action of taking a sip of the tea. "I'm glad Janette was able to help."

"Well, the glass of wine helped as well. She has very nice stock. Of wines." She took another sip of the tea. Thinking about work, really thinking about it, had helped put things into perspective for her – what things to really worry about and what just temporary. Meeting with Janette had helped as well; it had been good to talk to someone who would also understand and be affected if Nick left. "I realize now, it's just paperwork and procedures – it'll get done. It's not worth running away from everyone."

Nick took a very small sip of his protein substitute. "So did you still want to talk? Sounds like you're already more relaxed compared to last night, and will handle tonight better."

"Yeah. I can't believe yesterday I was actually thinking about leaving. Really, actually giving it some serious thought. And to run off to a circus."

"It was just the effects of the stress."

Natalie nodded in agreement. "You said you'd been in the circus before. Could you talk about that? Why did you go to them?"

Nick leaned back into the leather cushion. "It's like I said before: I know what it's like to feel overwhelmed and trapped and the mind turning towards ways to escape."

"You said you did magic tricks, but Janette said you've done more than that."

One corner of Nick's lips twitched upward. "Yeah. Sometimes I performed, like the magic tricks, but actually most of the time I just helped. Helped with set-up, helped treat minor injuries, helped with the animals, stuff like that. Activities that could be done away from the sunlight."

Natalie indicated the hanging posters. "So is that when you got those posters?"

Nick looked over at the far brick wall with the canvases. "Ah. Well, I got some of them when I worked with the circus. I actually painted most of them."

"You painted them?"

Nick glanced back at Nat. "Yeah. Circuses need lots of jobs filled, and one I could do was paint banner canvases. These announced the various performers and their acts and shows that were to happen. The performers could change quickly, so they needed a painter to travel with the group. Plus, exterior banners ripped in the winds and faded in the sunlight, so they had to be replaced often. The wagons and equipment needed painting as well, so there was plenty to do." Nick took another sip and then put the drink down on the small table next to his arm. "The ones hanging here were the interior banners; they're in better condition since they weren't exposed to the elements."

Natalie looked back at the canvases while she drank some more of her cooling tea. She guessed the older banner was the large yellow one on the right. That one had Barnum's name on it, along with three individuals. The most prominent was a large mustachioed man dressed in what she guessed was a military uniform. His jacket was painted open, revealing a white vest and red cravat while lapels of red fringe were on each shoulder that matched in color to the red plume on his hat. He was standing next to a woman painted in a red dress while he held a tiny child dressed in pink. "So the poster with those people on it," Natalie prompted.

Nick smiled at the memory that canvas evoked. "'Barnum's Circus: The Greatest Show on Earth.' That banner was to advertise these two amazing individuals – a little person and a giant. The woman in the red dress was a lady of average height, so you could see the size difference. The man was Colonel Goshen, and at that time he was paired with the girl, Nellie."

"So when did you join up with them? And why?"

Nick's forehead scrunched in thought as he did the calculation. "It was around one hundred and fifteen years ago. I was in Colorado, running, of course; evading family and hunters of all sorts."

"Hunters? Like bounty hunters?"

Nick nodded his head. "At the time, LaCroix, Janette, and I were still wanted for some deaths in California."

"Did you …." Nick's face had such a haunted expression that Natalie was sorry she asked the question without thinking.

"It didn't matter if I had killed those people, I didn't do anything to stop the ones that did. I couldn't save them, and I couldn't stay." He coughed. "So, I was in Colorado seeing an area of red rock formations called the Garden of the Gods. LaCroix finally caught up with me near there." Nick omitted that he had first been caught by a bounty hunter and didn't want to mention what LaCroix had done afterward. "With various hunters around, it's safer to travel with others, so I went with him, met Janette in Colorado Springs, and we all moved up to Denver. After about a year, well, it didn't take long before I just had to leave again, but I didn't know how I was going to arrange travel." Nick grinned. "Then, in 1880, the circus came to town. It was the first time Barnum's Circus had ever been in Denver. His circus had never made it out to the west before, so it was quite an attraction; everyone went to see them."

"Including you," Natalie guessed.

"Yes. And LaCroix and Janette. Janette thought it was amusing, but she was more focused on whom her next prey in the crowd would be. LaCroix was interested in its military applications: efficiently moving a small city of personnel, equipment, and animals quickly and arranging supply deliveries along the way."

"But you were interested in them."

Nick leaned forward. "The circus is an amazing place. Carnivals and shows have always had, as an intrinsic part of them, a feeling of escape: from the mundane life; from your past. And travel." Nick looked at the canvas again. "I saw it as a way to quickly get back to the east coast, get on a ship, and leave for England."

"LaCroix let you go?"

"I told him I was interested in interacting and feeding upon someone in the neighboring town, so I would be away and occupied for a while."

"And he believed you?"

Nick shrugged as he turned to face Nat again. "It's what he wanted to hear."

Natalie looked at the other poster on the wall, which was all text on a white background. "So which circus did you join later?"

"Not that one, the next one is upstairs."

Natalie put her mug of tea down on the small table next to the chair and followed Nick to the main staircase.

"So once I arrived in England," Nick said as he walked up the stairs, "I had wanted to live simply and be alone; I needed to think, and I didn't want to be a danger to anyone else. I spent a couple of years living near the moor in Devon, away from towns and people. Then LaCroix found where I was." Nick scowled in response to the harsh memories that had brought up. "He had his fun, there were some deaths, and I had to move on."

Once Natalie was at the top of the stairs, she walked with Nick down the hall to the walls that made up his bedroom. Nick pointed to a large white canvas banner showing a man riding a brown horse, and she stopped in front of it.

"Buffalo Bill Cody. After what had happened I wanted an ocean between me and LaCroix, so I went to the States again and wandered around. Eventually, I wanted to be with others; to be surrounded by humanity again; to interact with them again, and to be constantly busy." Nick didn't elaborate; he didn't want to tell Nat that the constant work kept the memories from overwhelming him. "I heard Bill had a unique show and wanted to recruit anyone who knew and remembered the ways of the Old West, which were beginning to be forgotten and lost. I knew about that, had seen it, and knew how to care for horses, so I joined his group in 1886. One job I was given was making this particular banner that was needed for a new sharpshooter he had just signed." Nick touched the names on the poster as he said them. "Gabriel Dumont was to join in the performance with Annie Oakley."

Natalie had learned about both of those individuals when she had been younger. "What were they like?"

"Annie was extraordinary, both with her shooting skills and how passionate she was in empowering women. Dumont wasn't much for talking. He actually wouldn't stay for long, just a few months, so this banner didn't get much use. But I stayed with the Wild West show, even when they did their tour of Europe the following year. Then I, too, left before the season was over."

"Why?"

"I crossed paths with LaCroix when the tour reached England."

Natalie waited for Nick to say more, but he just stared at the poster. After a few more moments, Nick turned and walked away from the bedroom and headed towards the balcony that led to the small open area where the sunbed was placed. She followed and stopped next to him when he reached the top of the rear stairs next to the brick wall. From her position she could easily see a similar banner to the one they had just left: a banner for Buffalo Bill. This one was only text surrounded by scrollwork. The piece advertised the Wild West Congress of Rough Riders.

"About a hundred years ago I was at a dig in Central America." Nick didn't bother to say the rest: Nat knew it.

Natalie remained silent; she had heard this story before. Nick had been digging at Altun Kinal, looking for a cure and had found a cup needed for the ritual. Then LaCroix had come, killed many, and Nick had to leave. A few years ago an archeologist had unearthed another cup and LaCroix had come to claim it. LaCroix had destroyed the second cup and later killed Alyce in Nick's loft. Natalie glanced back at the burn marks on the elevator door. LaCroix had also been assumed to have died shortly after that.

"After I left there, I eventually reached Chicago, which was hosting the World's Fair. It showcased many new ideas and devices, and promised optimism for the future, both culturally and to show that the city had recovered from their Great Fire. I needed to feel that too: recovery and hope."

Natalie turned to look at Nick. "Buffalo Bill was at the Fair?"

Nick uttered a short laugh. "Uh, somewhat. He had wanted to be included but had been denied. So he went anyway, set up outside the Fair, and called it his Congress of Rough Riders."

"So you didn't paint this poster?"

"No, it's more of a memento from the time." Nick turned his head slightly to avoid Nat's gaze. "I sort of snuck off with it."

"You stole it?"

"Not really," he said, turning back to face her. "It was the end of their time at the Fair, and they were just going to cut it up for scrap cloth. They didn't really want it, and I was preserving it." Nick waited for a response from her but only received a slight huff. "So you still feeling better? Ready to go to work and tackle that?"

"I think so. That work's not what I'm worried about now." Natalie, throughout all of Nick's recounting, had been made clearly aware of the pattern: when LaCroix came, Nick had to escape. She also knew LaCroix was back in the city. "Nick, now that LaCroix is here, are you considering-"

"No," Nick quickly interrupted, shaking his head. "I'm not going to run because of LaCroix."

"Just promise me," Natalie began, "you won't slip away one night and join a circus again."

He grinned and leaned over to bump his shoulder lightly into Nat's shoulder. "You do have the circus a lot on your mind lately, don't you?" Nick then became serious, knowing this was really important to Nat, and knowing there were other reasons besides LaCroix's presence that might make him have to leave. "I promise I won't. Though given what you have said lately, I think you need to promise me the same thing."

"I promise not to run away and join the circus," Natalie vowed.

Nick reached into his pants pocket and pulled out two tickets. "But maybe we can still go see it. And for a short while, together, join in with them."

Natalie smiled. "I would like that."


End file.
